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In addition to showcasing its new speaker bar, Pioneer is talking up three audio-video receivers here at CE Week, including one that offers a pretty nifty industry first feature. Though the trio of home theater components are fairly similar, the SC-79 is the most notable, as it’s the first such device to feature embedded HDBaseT support. That means it can deliver uncompressed HD video — even 4K — at distances of up to 300 feet using an Ethernet cable rather than HDMI. It’s not yet a widely adopted spec, but it’s especially useful for a multi-room setup, since it requires only one wired connection. That leads us to the other standout feature: the SC-79 can output audio and video to four zones simultaneously, and you can control media across multiple rooms via an Android or iOS app. All that functionality will cost you a pretty penny when the receiver launches in July: the MSRP is $3,000. See it in action right after the break.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

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Sony has been big on smartphone integration for car audio lately, having already launched its MirrorLink receivers earlier in the year for the more well-heeled drivers among us. The company is bringing that mobile tie-in down to Earth through a new quartet of in-car CD receivers. The MEX-GS600BT, MEX-BT4100P, MEX-BT3100P and CDX-GS500R all bring in App Remote, which lets the faceplate buttons steer local music or Pandora streaming radio coming from Android, BlackBerry, iOS and Walkman devices paired through a Bluetooth wireless link. The old-fashioned USB connection is still on offer for these and the HD Radio-toting CDX-GT710HD, while the whole collection can graft on the optional SXV200V1 tuner to carry the full Sirius XM satellite radio lineup. Differences across the line aren’t completely clear from Sony’s wording, although both the MEX-GS600BT and CDX-GS500R carry two USB ports as well as 5-volt RCA preamp outputs. You’ll be waiting awhile to slip any of these receivers into a DIN slot, regardless of which one you pick: the GS500R ships in October for $199, and the rest hit the shops in November for between $149 to $249.

Continue reading Sony unveils in-car receivers with App Remote, taps into your smartphone music from October

Filed under: Cellphones, Home Entertainment

Sony unveils in-car receivers with App Remote, taps into your smartphone music from October originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Aug 2012 22:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s been a little less than a year since Onkyo first entered the software-based remote space, and now the company’s ready to give those controls a major boost with the help of a much needed refresh to its iOS, Android applications. To kick things off, Onkyo’s Remote 2 app is finally making music streaming capabilities friendly with this year’s TX-NR receivers, while other under-the-hood enhancements were made to the various remote zone functions. In addition to these improvements, Onkyo also introduced its $60 UBT-1 Bluetooth adapter, essentially offering the same tune streaming features but “through a hardware gateway” and, best of all, at a much higher quality. Unlike the USB dongle (which is available now), however, the free apps won’t be available until sometime “at the end of the month” from Cupertino’s App Store, Google Play and Amazon’s custom shop. In the meantime, you can keep yourself occupied by checking out the official pressers and UBT-1 picture right after the break.

Continue reading Onkyo upgrades remote apps for latest-gen receivers, intros music streaming Bluetooth adapter

Filed under: Home Entertainment, Wireless, Software

Onkyo upgrades remote apps for latest-gen receivers, intros music streaming Bluetooth adapter originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Jul 2012 16:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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